North Korea’s regime is incomprehensible to many Americans. “There is something about the harshness and the evil nature of the North Korean regime that defies imagination: It’s so bizarre that it makes us laugh rather than cry.” It shouldn’t. North Korea “imprisons whole families for generations. When food is short, it quietly allows thousands to die off.” Under the rule of Kim Jong Un, reality is stark: “people die of starvation and torture.”

In China, rule by law is an “empty promise.” In the years since President Xi Jinping “came to power, hundreds of rights defenders and intellectuals have been thrown into prison for political reasons. Properties have been expropriated or demolished, free speech has been restricted, religion has been suppressed, women have been forced to have abortions, and torture has multiplied. In Xinjiang and Tibet, the authorities have carried out one shocking human rights catastrophe after another. The abuses have never stopped.” The current Government campaign of “‘governing the country according to law’ is just another attempt by the party to address its crisis of legitimacy. Such slogans may help the party fool people within China and the international community.”